


In This Generation

by MultiVerSonalityDisorder



Category: Eureka Seven
Genre: Angst, Children, Family, Grandchildren, In This Generation, Next Gen, Next Generation, Other, Post-Series, Romance, Through the Years, Time Skips, War, manga/anime universe, mixed universes, political struggles, slight AU, three generations
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-22
Updated: 2017-10-12
Packaged: 2018-03-14 15:14:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,226
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3415472
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MultiVerSonalityDisorder/pseuds/MultiVerSonalityDisorder
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The legacy of the GekkoState find themselves caught in the middle of a war. First three to five chapters will be based in between the generations with progress within the GekkoState and setting for the world the newer generation will face. Fluffy first chapter. HxT ExR MxG DxA.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. In Three Years

**Author's Note:**

> So, this will be the first time I'm working with the Eureka Seven universe. Now, since I find that there's a bit of wiggle room between the manga, anime, and film, I did adjust a bit of details making this a slightly altered universe. I know there's Eureka Seven: Ao, but I'm going to try to go about a continuation in another way. The first three to five chapters are going to be a bit fluffy, and may seem like they are focusing on the future of GekkoState, but I will be applying bits of setting and environmental/governmental changes as well. Please, have a little faith, as by the sixth chapter at LATEST, the plot will move further in motion. I have planned this out to be a fiction of considerable length.
> 
> The implied couples are: EurekaXRenton, HollandXTalho, MoondoggieXGidget, DominicXAnenome, MauriceXOC, and MaeterXOC; along with several OCXOC. This is mainly to build up the universe and plot.
> 
> As I go, I do not own ANYTHING, save for the OCs which are the children (and later grandchildren) of a select few from the GekkoState.

Three years had passed since the day that Eureka and Renton disappeared into the earth. Disappeared from any physical form that the others had known of them. But, they were still upon the world that surrounded their friends and family, as they were joined with the Scub Coral and peace between them and the humans was strengthening with each day.

The Gekko was modified to fit better with the ocean that no eyes of the present had seen before, smelled before. The wind that surrounded you as you stood by the waves, the water that chilled at first before becoming a lukewarm as your body became accustomed to it. Everything that was this new world was wonderful, and it was all thanks to those two children.

And, it ate at him every day.

“Holland?” Talho stepped into their room, a young boy’s hand in hers. She glanced around with the door sliding behind them, and sighed when it appeared to be undisturbed. “Looks like there’s no Papa here, either.”

“We’ll find him, Mama.” The woman turned her attention to her son. Hair much like his father’s, but a tad darker, and his eyes were akin to his mother’s. Wearing khaki cargo shorts and a sapphire blue sleeveless tank, the boy rarely ever wore shoes at this tender age as his father didn’t mind that he got to know this planet the way it originally was; the way his parents never got to.

“That’s right,” she smiled down, but a sense of worry was itching at the back of her mind. Something was bothering her, but she couldn’t put her finger on it. “Hey, Conrad,” she kneeled down in an antique white two-tiered dress; teasing her knees, it was sleeveless with a crewneck and a sash the color of a pink amaranth tied in the front about her hips. She teasingly pinched his cheeks, and he giggled at the affection before looking into his mother’s eyes expectantly. “I know you won’t like it, but I’m going to have to ask you to stay in this room, all right?”

“But, I don’t wanna,” he pouted, and Talho had to refrain from giggling, as his face was starting to contort in a similar manner to his father.

“I know, but listen,” she tugged on his tiny fingers. “Jobs will keep you company. You enjoy talking with him, right?”

A pink tint washed over Conrad’s cheeks, he huffed and twiddled his toes, “No.”

“Oh, don’t say that. You’ll make Jobs sad if you do.”

“F-Fine,” he clenched his mother’s fingers. “But, why?”

“Be patient, and you’ll see,” she placed a kiss to his forehead before rising. “Now, why don’t you go color on the bed and I’ll call Jobs to join you?”

“Okay, Mama,” Conrad nodded before dashing to the large bed that his family shared. Under the pillow was one of his many coloring books and in the drawer of his nightstand he pulled out a box of his much used crayons. He was quick to engulf himself within his activity, and Talho slipped through the door, allowing it to close behind her before she relaxed against the wall with a sigh.

“Holland, where are you?”

“You should have a guess,” a voice chuckled. Talho looked over to see that Hap was making his way down the hall. “If he’s not here, he’s probably out getting something for Conrad. You know he wouldn’t miss his own son’s birthday.”

Again, she sighed, but attempted a smile, “I know.” Then, she scowled, “But, he better get his butt back here in time for the party. So help me…”

Raising his hands in defense, Hap shook his head, “If he’s late, you do what you want and no one will say otherwise. Just like any other day.”

“Good,” Talho flicked her hair (it having grown out a bit past her shoulders) and turned. “Man the door for me while I get Jobs.” Holding back a chuckle, Hap gave the woman a salute, and he was inwardly hoping that Holland was going to make it, because if he didn’t everyone would have to suffer Talho’s wrath.

* * *

 

 

 

“This sucks,” came the grumble of a man in his early thirties. He found himself kicking a few rocks down the dirt path that led out of town, hands stuffed in his trouser pockets with his lips twisted in a frown, brows furrowing, and shoulders slouched. “Running through that whole market and not a damn thing.” He glanced at his watch, and the grimace deepened, “Talho’s gonna kill me if I don’t get my ass going.” There was a heavy sigh, “What do you even get a three year old anyway?”

Last year, Holland was able to get away with making Conrad an activity board, with thanks to Mattheiu. It had a bunch of puzzles and noise makers, and even some tools that could assist his reflexes and muscle control. He’d never tell anyone, but he got the idea out of one of the baby books that Talho toted about. Either way, the gift not only pleased Talho, but it elated Conrad in having something to do on the ship, but now Holland was lost. What was he expected to get?

* * *

 

There was a flash of a camera, capturing the dining area of the Gekko as Woz and Hilda were helping Talho with some of the streamers of orange and yellow. Stoner was capturing the moment, an unlit cigarette in the corner of his mouth as he spoke, “So, the great and fearless leader went out on his own special mission, I hear.”

“Unless he steps foot onto this ship, I don’t want to talk about it, Stoner,” Talho murmured, steadying herself on a stool before she reached up to pin a section of the streamers to the ceiling.

“Talk about what?” Gidget inquired, as she and Mischa walked in with a box of their own.

“Holland still hasn’t found a present for Conrad,” Hilda answered simply, earning a glare from Talho who said nothing.

Mischa rose a brow, after placing one of the decoration boxes in the center of the table, “He’s still not back yet?”

Taking out some packages of balloons and game sets, Gidget; who had seemed considerably larger in her abdomen, and dressed in a pale sundress that hit her ankles; looked up with her own quizzical brow, “How long has he been out?”

“I saw him leaving about eight this morning,” Woz drawled, handing up some of the streamer to Talho who kept her mouth sealed.

“It’s already past noon! He’s been out this long?!”

“If you ask me, he shouldn’t have procrastinated,” Hilda murmured.

Mischa crossed her arms, sitting beside Stoner on one of the couches, “You know he’s a bit of a perfectionist. If it’s for Conrad, he’s not going to just stick with something. It has to be the best.”

“My guess is that he has no idea what he’s doing,” Stoner mumbled, taking another shot but with a peculiar angle that seemed to please him. “Even though it’s been three years, that’s still very new for most parents, and for someone with Holland’s personality, it’s only to be expected that he’d be stumped.”

Talho stepped down from the stool, giving a light huff before she straightened. Taking the hair tie about her wrist, she started to put her hair up haphazardly as she sighed, “There’s still a few hours. Ken-Goh said he could bake the cake this year, and he hasn’t gotten to that yet, at all. Holland still has time.”

 

 

 

In fact, he had exactly three hours, five minutes, and thirty-three, two, one…

* * *

 

“Give me a break!”

 

 

People in the bay area looked around towards the man who was shouting outside one of the trinket stores. Women were easing their children, and men were keeping a sharp eye on this man, Holland Novak. He was starting to lose it, it appeared. His face was red, hair in a disarray, and it seemed as though his entire temper was released as he stomped pass the locals. This man’s blood pressure was on its way to sky rocketing off the charts.

Time was flying fast. There was an hour and fifteen minutes before the party. And, Holland was nowhere to be found.

* * *

 

“Hey! Talho!” Moondoggie stomped in, another box in his hands and a light in his eyes as he made his direction towards that of the Novak woman; who was starting to set up one of the games; involving pinning a tail on some animal (an animal that Talho was fond of calling Holland when the occasion was right).

The woman’s brow twitched at the young man’s voice, her eyes darted to him, glaring, and she growled, “Yeah?”

“What’s with this?!” he dropped the box upon the table, and Gidget was scurrying in the best she could in her condition.

“Doggie! Stop! You’re being unreasonable!” she made her way over towards her boyfriend and he looked to her with a scowl on his lips before back at Talho.

“Gidget shouldn’t be carrying anything while she’s pregnant,” he huffed. “So, why are you putting her to work?!”

Talho sighed, turning to face Moondoggie as Woz and Mattheiu; who were also there in the room; watched on in both excitement and worry for the young blonde. “Listen, Doggie, I’m perfectly aware of Gidget’s condition. I know what she can handle, and what she can’t. But, she’s only been carrying a few light boxes that are practically empty,” she crossed her arms. “Gidget wanted to help out, so I gave her the minimal so she could be included and still safe.”

“That’s what I’ve been trying to say!” Gidget took hold of Moondoggie’s hand, and the young man blushed. “I really wanted to help out. I selfishly decided to. Don’t be mad at her, Doggie. Miss Mischa even said it would be okay so long as I didn’t overdo it.” She placed a hand over her stomach that was swollen with child, “The thought of doing something like this for our little one…made me really want to try this time.” She looked into her boyfriend’s eyes, meaningfully and with a pink tint dusting her own cheeks, “Don’t you think…it’s exciting?”

“A-Ah, um…” Moondoggie’s eyes quickly flickered to the older men in the room, only to see that Mattheiu was withholding giggles as Moondoggie had gotten himself caught between a rock and a hard place. Then, he glanced to Talho, who was holding an air of triumph as Moondoggie had let his temper and protective nature of his mate and child get the best of him, only to make himself look like an ass who didn’t know anything. He swallowed nervously, eyes meeting with an expectant Gidget. He gave a crooked smile, and his shoulders slumped, “Y-Yeah…I’ll…help out, too…”

“That’s the spirit!” Talho slapped the young man’s shoulder, making him yelp.

Gidget embraced him the best she could with her stomach between them, “Thank you, so much Doggie. Thank you, for looking out for us.”

The last part had been but a whisper for only Doggie’s ears to hear, and the pink on his cheeks increased to a moderate maroon of pride and bliss. His hands found their way to Gidget’s shoulders, and he happily inquired to Talho, “All right, what can I do?”

* * *

 

“Happy Birthday, Conrad!”

The three year old boy was wide-eyed as he and Jobs had entered the room, hand-in-hand. The whole crew was there, and he was elated. All were there, except… There was a brief moment of disappointment in his eyes, but he looked to his mother with a beaming smile. He scurried over and embraced her, saying thank you as that was how he was taught.

“Okay, Ken-Goh!” Hilda hollered over from across the room to the kitchen where said man in blue waited. “Bring out that boy’s cake!”

“Cake?!” Conrad giggled, cheeks flushed as Ken-Goh rounded the counter with a large chocolate cake, frosted in yellow with orange writing.

“There you are,” the large male placed it beside the small mound of presents on the table, and Conrad scurried over, mouth open in his smile. Looking up at Ken-Goh, then to everyone, he once more said his thanks.

Stoner flashed his camera, crouching down to the side, he ordered, “C’mon, Mama, get beside him. I’ll make a memory.”

“I hope you aren’t planning to make a memory without me.”

Everyone froze at that voice before turning towards the entrance, and sure enough, Holland had arrived. Completely out of breath, his sheer willpower was the lone factor keeping his appearance “cool” for his son.

“Papa!” Conrad rushed over, embracing his father’s thighs and almost knocking him off balance.

“Hey, buddy,” he ruffled the boy’s hair with a secretive grin. “Happy birthday.”

“Huh?” Before the boy could say thank you, Holland presented him with a sloppily wrapped gift. Grinning from ear to ear, Conrad took it before rushing over to the table and unwrapping it, his mother sitting beside him and turning “the look” towards his father, who could only raise his hands in self-defense. Holland joined them, sitting on his son’s free side, and trying not to chuckle at the excitement that glowed in Conrad’s eyes as he unveiled his present.

A plain sketchpad and a new pack of crayons.

“You’re always coloring someone else’s art,” Holland stated. “I thought you could color your own.”

Falling silent, Conrad’s cheeks were a bright pink before he turned to embrace his father, “Thank you, Papa.”

“Wow, it’s sure weird to hear you being called ‘Papa’.”

Now, that voice was different, yet oddly familiar.

The Gekko-crew looked once more towards the door, and there they were. They would have never expected it, but they were finally back, finally home. Renton and Eureka. Renton had shot up in height, as one would expect for a young man his age to do with three years having passed. Eureka even grew in size, and her face matured. Behind them were the children, the children they had left with Axel Thurston. Maurice, Maeter, and Linck; all had grown considerably as children do, and all were grinning ear to ear.

With everyone silent, Renton and Eureka grew a bit nervous, looking to each other before Renton chuckled, “S-Sorry that we interrupted.”

“No, don’t be,” Talho was smiling, and her eyes glistening.

“Uh, what’s that…” Moondoggie trailed off as he pointed to a bundle in Eureka’s arms. “What’s that…you brought with you?”

“Oh!” Eureka shifted, revealing a tiny life form with light brown hair. “Our daughter, Aurora.”

Holland twitched, but was brought down to Earth by a tug on his sleeve from his son, “Papa, what’s…going on?”

“Ah, well,” the man scratched the back of his neck with uneasiness. “Damn it.” He pointed to the group, “Sit your asses down. It’s time for cake.”

This was going to be a much longer day than Holland thought.

**-**


	2. News

“Conrad!”

Each syllable was drawn out in a thunderous rage that vibrated throughout the GekkoState. Sitting in the common area, all could hear, but had little clue as to why.

“What in the world…?” KenGoh’s brows furrowed as his eyes instinctively flew to the ceiling in wonder as to why he could hear Holland’s voice sound out from seemingly nowhere.

Gidget sighed, sitting with the aging man at the table with a magazine in front of her. She was leaning against her palm, elbow propped up on one side. Her hair had gotten a tad shorter, almost a pixie cut save for the bangs that teased her lashes. Her makeup lessened and clothes a bit more modest in her years of being a mother. A simple violet camisole and cargo jeans were what she could be bothered to wear today. The heat outside was unbearable and the last few days the air conditioning had gone out; yet to be repaired.

“Dominic and Anemone came to meet up with Eureka and Renton today, didn’t they? I saw Dahlia and Amaryllis earlier playing with the kids,” the young woman explained. “Conrad’s probably getting himself into trouble, again. Always does when the Sorel kids come. More so than usual, at least.”

Suddenly, the door opened into the room and a herd of youths came scrambling in.

The first one to catch the eyes of any spectator in that room was a five year old girl who screamed out, “He’s coming! He’s coming!” This was Max Novak. Holland and Talho’s daughter. She had short dark black curls and steely round eyes. She wore a white long sleeved shirt, an odd character on the front, with the back a bit longer with a slight tail snipped in the middle, and a pair of leggings; the left side grey and the right pink.

The next one was eight year old Aurora Thurston. Her hair was up in pigtails, a nice golden shade of brown, eyes a light blue, and a smile beaming on her face with the utter excitement that came with the bi-monthly torture of her godfather. In her grey tunic with an owl on the front, her leggings were a mix of aquatic blues and greens in odd shapes and patterns with a matching scarf about her neck.

Surprisingly, in third place was Maeter; now fourteen years old. The teen’s eyes were wide in the thrill despite the grimace in her features, her blonde waves that had hit her shoulders were flying about in the frenzy, and the bangles on her wrists clacked together in a crude symphony. She wore her own spring green tunic, decorated in a floral pattern, with navy blue leggings and as well as a scarf; Aurora had become accustomed to parroting her older sister.

Her older brother, Maurice, was hot on her heels; looking a bit less enthused about the whole fiasco. His hair had grown out in an unruly manner, kept tight in a short ponytail with many loose strands dangling about. His t-shirt was grey with contrasting bold green long sleeves, and his cargo shorts were a dark black with six bulky pockets – loose on his thin frame.

A girl with long lavender hair that stopped mid-back in a French braid and silver eyes scurried in with a high-pitched giggle. This was eight year old Dahlia Sorel; the daughter of Dominic and Anemone. The navy chiffon skirt of her striped sleeveless dress fluttered about as it hit her knee caps; a nice mint to even out of the darker shade of blue. About her neck was a nice silver chain with a little pendant of her namesake.

The sixth member of this gang of troublemakers was seven year old Rupert Austin Emerson; the son of Gidget and James (AKA Moondoggie). The boy had ash blonde curls bouncing in his face, about his cheeks and his hazel eyes were shining brightly under the fluorescent lights. He wore a simple pair of jeans, and a charcoal shaded fleece pullover, sleeves rolled up past his elbows with his cheeks flushed from the heat.

Linck was right behind the boy. His hair had begun to grow out just a bit, held back by a bright yellow headband. He wore a black and grey checkered long sleeve button up, collar up straight with his sleeves rolled up as well, with cargo shorts much like his older brother’s only a dark brown camo pattern.

Conrad Novak – the main perpetrator – dashed in. Now ten, he wore a grey t-shirt with thin lava-red stripes crossing horizontally, and contrasting black sleeves that met at the neck, as well as dark jeans.

The ninth and final end of the disastrous bunch was eight year old Amaryllis Sorel; the son of Dominic and Anemone and younger twin of Dahlia. He was identical to his sister in almost every way; hair, eyes, facial features, height. However, his hair was kept short and clean, never appearing in a disarray if he could help it; as he was the son of a soldier. He wore a black hoodie, accented along the edges by a nice wolf-grey, and equally dark jeans.

“What are you children doing?!” KenGoh exclaimed with alarm.

“We’re hiding from Uncle Holland!” Aurora explained, a bit too enthusiastically as she was bubbling in her joy.

Shaking her head, Gidget slammed her palm on the table. “Rupert, get your little butt over here, right now,” she stated simply. Immediately, the boy froze for a moment before doing as he was told. She gestured for him to sit, and he obeyed. “First of all, get this off of you,” she pulled the fleece off from over his head. “It’s too hot to be wearing that. You’ll make yourself sick.” The boy wore nothing under his top, and he noticed the way his mother’s brows furrowed at the sight of the red tint along his collarbone and chest. She placed the back of her hand, cooler than his own skin, against his forehead and cheeks. “You’re warm. Just sit still, I’ll get a washcloth.”

“But, Mom, I’m fine,” Rupert insisted, his arms wrapping about his bare torso as he felt an odd chill from the way the air hit the sweat on his skin.

“Rupert, listen to your mother,” Moondoggie rose to his feet as he signaled to his wife that she didn’t need to move one bit. He slipped through the youths as he made his way to the kitchen to wet a cool rag. “What did we say about these pranks?”

“Don’t be that way, Moondoggie,” Maeter huffed, hands on her hips as she scowled. “We’re just having a bit of fun. We don’t do it all that often.”

Gidget turned her attention to the teenager, “Maeter, you and your brothers are getting a bit old for this sort of behaviour. You need to start acting a bit more your age.”

Mattheiu, who was sitting in the corner in a beanbag chair, leaning shirtless against Hilda who was running a hand through his damp hair, groaned out, “Here comes the lecture.”

Having wrung out the cloth, Moondoggie made his way over to his wife and son. He started to wipe the boy down as he sighed, “Gidget, just leave Maeter and the boys be for now. It’s too hot to have this conversation.”

“Conrad just wanted a demonstration,” Linck shrugged before he crossed his arms. “We still have a few tricks up our sleeves, so why not show him?”

Just then, the door opened, hands slamming on edges and it was Holland. Dressed in one of his ridiculously patterned pair of boxers, he had been napping just moments ago. His face and torso were covered in scribbles of all colors and his teeth had been turned black. He was furious, no doubt, and he knew exactly who it was he had his sights on. “Conrad. Here. Now.”

The boy, head hanging from the look in his father’s eyes, took a step before he whined, “I wasn’t the only one who did it!”

“I did it, too, Papa!” Max rose her hand with a giggle, and Holland frowned, slumping forward as he moved out of the way of the sliding door.

“Seems like the whole lot of them were plotting against you this time, Holland,” Moondoggie hummed before ruffling his son’s hair as he stood to place the washcloth back into the sink.

Hilda chuckled at the sight, fingers still gliding through her husband’s hair, “Want to make them clean the ship, again?”

“Who’s cleaning the ship?” Dominic inquired as he, Renton, and Eureka joined in on the hullaballoo; Anemone having been distracted when they ran into Talho in the halls. Dahlia and Amaryllis rushed over to their father, embracing him and nearly knocking him over as they abandoned their friends.

Linck looked from his siblings to his mother, frowning, “Hilda’s trying to convince Holland that we should clean the ship just for drawing on him a bit while he was sleeping.”

Leaning against the kitchen counter, Moondoggie crossed his arms, “You guys do the crime, you’re gonna have to do the time. We can’t just let this all go.”

“Linck, Maeter, Maurice,” Eureka shook her head. “You are outgrowing these tricks. You know better, and you teaching the younger children isn’t something to laugh about.”

“Your mother’s right, kids,” KenGoh bobbed his head in agreement. “We’re getting too old to handle these pranks of yours.”

Renton rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. Trying not to laugh at the sight of Holland; this man whom he respected. It brought back memories of when Linck, Maeter, and Maurice used to do the same to him. His eyes caught Aurora’s, and he sighed with a lopsided smile at how excited she was over the gag, despite the fear of punishment.

Little Max walked up to her father, grabbing hold of his hands and blinking up at him a tad bit concerned as her fervor began to die down. “Papa, did we do bad?” she queried.

Moondoggie was about to speak when his eyes met with Gidget’s, telling him to silence immediately. It was not his place to speak at this moment in time.

Holland, however, felt a pang in his chest at the way his daughter looked up at him. He knelt down to face her properly, large hands on her petite shoulders as he spoke calmly, “What you did wasn’t good. Pranks may seem like fun, but they can hurt. Don’t your mother and I teach you to be nice and respectful? Would you like it if I snipped off some of your hair?” Max’s brows knitted together and she shook her head violently. “See? It’s not fun. Not nice. Not respectful.” He rose his brows, “Will you be doing this again?”

“No, Papa,” her response was soft, round cheeks flushed as she sniffled.

“Good girl,” he smiled gently, placing a kiss to her forehead before his eyes went up to his son. Conrad kept his eyes down, despite wanting to rise up and observe his father and sister. “You won’t be doing this again, will you, Conrad?” Mouth twitching, the boy said nothing, only shook his head with clenched fists. Holland sighed, before slowly rising to his feet, hand scratching his scalp as his rage slipped from him.

Maeter eyed the situation carefully, crossing her arms and cautiously inquired, “So, are we free to go then?”

“I don’t think so,” Eureka said pointedly, face stern though her tone was slacking.

Before Maeter could protest, Maurice placed a hand on his sister’s shoulder and sighed, “Yes, Mama.”

“Now, then!” Moondoggie clapped his hands together, as if it was the deciding factor that this event was done and over with. His eyes slipped over to the new arrivals that joined this merry party, and he pushed, “Did you lot finish with what you were discussing?”

Dominic stiffened before nodding, “Er, yes, we have.”

“And?” Gidget urged.

“Well…”

“What is it, Papa?” Amaryllis asked his father politely.

Jobs, who had been making something small to eat throughout this ruckus, inquired, “Or, are you not allowed to tell us?”

“Is it something we should be worried about?” Moondoggie scowled.

“Is it about that Nax guy?” Maurice guessed.

Dominic heaved a sigh, “Yes. Nax is causing a great deal of commotion in the lower areas of Fukuoka. And-”

“Maybe it’s best we not discuss this here,” Holland interjected.

Moondoggie’s eyes fell to Gidget then their son. His jaw clenched, “Should we move this to another room, then?”

“Papa,” Dahlia called up to Dominic, feeling the atmosphere and frowning. “Is something wrong?”

Max looked up to her own father, seeing the stone-like features in his eyes was rare and never good in her short experience, “Papa, is it bad?”

Hilda rose to her feet, shifting Mattheiu aside and hurried over, arms open. “How about I take the kids out for a swim?” she eyed the parents in the room. “It’s hot outside, and it’d be nice to dunk in the water, wouldn’t it kids?”

Holland’s gaze turned to Max, whose attention was still on him. He attempted a smile, realizing she was trying to understand his thoughts, which were not meant for an easily frightened child to know. “Yeah, swimming sounds like fun, right, Max?”

“I think it’s a great idea, Hilda,” Eureka tried on her own smile. “Thank you.”

“We don’t have to go, do we Mama?” Maeter frowned.

Linck joined in, “Yeah. We aren’t little. We can handle whatever you guys are talking about. We can help!”

The aqua-haired woman shook her head, “No, you three go, as well. If we can, we’ll discuss it with you later. Understand?”

Maurice, again, spoke up to silence his siblings, “Yes, Mama. We understand.” He was given dirty looks from the younger two, but he ignored them. He knew they hated it when he did things like that. They thought he was looking down on them, trying to play the mature one, but he simply wanted peace and quiet. He knew there was no fighting with their mother, and he’d be damned if he had to listen to another fight between her and Maeter.

“Good,” Renton smiled over to Maurice thankfully before calling over his youngest.

Meanwhile, Gidget stood with Rupert, as she whispered into Moondoggie’s ear. He nodded in understanding and Gidget looked to Hilda, “I’ll help you with the kids. One more pair of eyes.”

“What is it, Papa?” Aurora asked warily, just as sensitive to this atmosphere as the other children were.

Kneeling down before her, Renton simply smiled, “I just want you to behave while you’re out with Hilda and Gidget, all right? I’m trusting you.”

Nodding with a half-smile of her own, the child wrapped her arms about her father’s neck, “Yes, Papa.”

“I’ll go send out a notice to the rest of the crew,” Jobs announced as he slipped by the group in front of the door.

With a huff, Maeter followed out, “Come on, guys. Let’s go get changed.” She gave a grumble of “stupid” under her breath as she passed her mother. Eureka only sighing as her children went by one-by-one.

The other children were quick to follow; including the twins. Conrad still refused to look up at his father’s face at this point in time even as he was corralled out by Hilda and Gidget, but his ears picked up every sound they could. Just before the door closed behind them, he could hear his father speak, “Is it as bad as we thought?”

\- 


	3. Times Change

A switch was flipped, turning off the television as Talho sighed. She rubbed at the back of her neck before her fingers ran through her hair. Her mind was scrambling as she tried to think of the words she just heard.

“Mom,” sixteen year old Conrad was at the edge of the room with a stern look on his face. The woman whipped around, her face falling. Conrad’s hair had grown shaggy, skinny fit jeans tucked in a pair of thick boots. A long sleeved crew neck shirt made of three large bold stripes of red, black, and white was rolled up at his elbows. His eyes were hard, and he pushed, “Nax is starting a war. Isn’t he?”

“Conrad,” Moondoggie stood up from his seat in the living area. “What makes you think that?”

“Obviously, he’s pretty much declaring war. He’s giving the whole world an ultimatum.”

Maeter – now twenty – had been sitting beside Gidget. She turned to see the young man from her spot. She was worried, and Conrad was smart. He wasn’t going to take this any other way. He could sense the truth.

Gidget looked to Moondoggie. It was obvious her husband was shaking. They’d already gone through so much to gain the peaceful lives they had, and now another lunatic was out there, trying to stir up trouble. Nax, though, had been working on it for years. He was slowly gaining followers. His faction was growing by the week. He somehow slithered his way into politics, and it was jaw-dropping how so many people seemed to agree with him. The crew couldn’t help but feel partially responsible. It was silly, but they had been keeping an eye on him for years, and yet they never did anything. Dominic kept tabs on him, the military did snuff out a few of his unruly riots in his earlier years. It seemed as though he grew and learned from that, however. Now, they all sat there with heavy dread in their bellies. It was enough to make you vomit.

“It won’t be a war,” twenty-one year old Maurice drawled from the corner of the room. “Maybe a small attempt of a coup, but not a war.”

Jobs was flipping through a few papers as he sat in one of the more comfortable chairs, “Perhaps we should have a meeting.”

“And, what would that accomplish? We’ve never gotten involved with this before. Why do we even pretend that we’re back to the old days?”

“Maurice,” Hap grouched as he rubbed at his scalp as he stood. “If there’s something we need to do, something we can offer, we should. I’m sure Dominic’s all over this already. We can’t leave him high and dry.”

* * *

"So, the big question is,” nineteen year old Linck leaned against the back of the sofa. His hair long and in his eyes, the beginnings of a goatee on his chin. He was shirtless in a pair of loose shorts on his sharp hips. Muscles rolled under his skin as he rubbed at his chin, “can I drive?”

“No, Linck,” Hap sighed, shaking his head. “None of you kids should be getting involved in this.”

“Maybe we should let them,” Hilda countered. “They’re adults. At least Maurice, Maeter, and Linck are. The others should stay out of sight, though. If we’re really getting involved.”

“I don’t know,” Eureka stood near the kitchen in Renton’s arms, leaning into his side. Her hair long and hanging over her shoulder.

Gidget was looking around, “You and Renton were a lot younger than them.”

“It’s different now,” the Thurston male sighed with some defeat.

Maurice scoffed, “How?”

“Because you’re their kids,” Talho answered sternly. “We were all reckless, we didn’t have anyone but each other. It’s all different now, because we’re parents. It’s simple, and it’s stupid, but it’s the truth.”

“We were there, too, though,” Maeter countered. “We were there when we took down Dewey.”

“But, you weren’t fighting,” Eureka nearly snapped. “We did our best to keep you from that. From seeing any more of that.”

“Listen, kids,” Hap cleared his throat, “you were there, but while we didn’t have our own parents over our shoulders,  we all felt a parental responsibility to you three. We still do.”

Holland sighed, hands on his hips, “I think we should let them out there. If it comes to this.”

“I’m not sure how much combat we can do, bossman,” Woz spoke up. “Unless we get some help from the government, we don’t have that many toys to throw into this mess.”

Linck looked over to Holland, “We don’t have anything do we?”

“This new terrain made everything we had obsolete,” Mattheiu explained. “So, we just never made any effort to replace them.”

“Do you think that Dominic could pull some strings on those new mechs they’ve been dabbling in?” Hilda inquired aloud.

“It can’t hurt to ask,” Moondoggie seconded the thought.

Talho ran her fingers through her hair, “The second question is, what do we do with the kids?”

“I thought we already went over that,” Linck rose his brows.

“We technically haven’t,” Stoner murmured under his breath as he fiddled with his camera, “but I think Talho is talking about the younger ones. The ones who aren’t here.”

Jobs added, “Well, another question is: what is the cut-off age? Eureka and Renton were involved at a younger age, as was just stated, but does that mean we allow some of the younger ones, as well? Or, do we have a cut-off age? Should at least Conrad join? He’s sixteen. Older than Eureka and Renton were.”

Mattheui rubbed the back of his neck, his eyes on Eureka and Renton, then jumping over to Holland and Talho. He sighed, “Is this gonna be a vote thing?”

“Aurora should stay out of this,” Eureka stated simply. “She’s not ready for a life like this. Out there in the fights.”

“But, Conrad?” Gidget looked to Holland and Talho, as well. “Rupert’s too young. I don’t think I could stomach him being out there. Just thirteen.”

Maeter rose a hand, “I say we allow Conrad to go. He’s smart. A good kid. He loves this ship and everyone on here. Asking him to step aside would be cruel.”

“I second that,” Maurice agreed with his sister. “Back when we were dealing with Dewey, it was hard. We were much younger, but we understood some things and knowing we couldn’t really do anything of importance…it hurts.”

“I get it,” Talho murmured. “I do. I really get it, Maurice, but…Conrad is too young. He wasn’t raised the same way we were. The world was different. We can’t just let him…”

“Talho,” Hap looked to his friends, her and Holland, “I love the kid, too, but we might need his help…”

**-TBC**


End file.
